The present invention relates to an easy-open container which can easily be opened by tearing off a scored wall of a container end or cover.
There is known an easy-open container, as disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Pat. Publication No. 60(1985)-193837, which has a container end or cover including a panel, a peripheral wall joined to and depending from the entire peripheral edge of the panel, and an end-opening pull tab attached to a lower edge of the peripheral wall. The peripheral wall is scored, i.e., cut to provide a tear-off line, substantially fully therearound, the tear-off line being joined to a side edge of the pull tab. The peripheral wall of the container end is fitted over an open end of a container barrel and bonded thereto to seal off the contents of the container barrel.
However, the disclosed easy-open container is disadvantageous in that the contents may flow out when the container barrel is opened by tearing off the scored container end along the tear-off line.
If the easy-open container contains a carbonated drink such as beer, a carbonated beverage, or the like, since the internal pressure in the container barrel is high, the container end is torn quickly continuously along the tear-off line at an initial phase of the container opening process, with the result that sniffing, i.e., drawing pressurized air out of the container, may not sufficiently be effected.
When the contents are not sufficiently cooled and there is a high pressure buildup in the container, a large sniff is produced under the high internal pressure when the container is opened. Furthermore, when the pull tab is pulled, the container barrel may be shaken, and the contents may be forced out because of an abrupt release of the internal pressure.
At the time the container end is torn off along the tear-off line, the bonded peripheral wall of the container end must also be peeled off simultaneously. Therefore, the container barrel and the tub gripped by the user are relatively moved away from each other with a relatively strong manual force. As the container end is progressively torn along the tear-off line, the peripheral wall thereof joined to the pull tab is peeled off the container barrel, and the distance between the container barrel and the pull tab is increased. Since the starting and terminal ends of tear-off line are not connected to each other, even when the container end is torn to the end of the tear-off line, a portion of the peripheral wall which extends between the starting and terminal ends of the tear-off line remains bonded to the container barrel. The container end can fully be opened or removed from the container barrel only when the remaining bonded portion of the peripheral wall is completely peeled off. When the remaining bonded portion of the peripheral wall is peeled off, the force which has been applied to the pull tab that is largely spaced from the container barrel is abruptly released. At this time, the container barrel may be shaken and the contents thereof may flow out.